Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1887-05-01
THE OLD aR. A"
ran tho Year Round.l
PART /.

manufacturing town OF Birmingham,
which then was only in tho dawn OF its
prosperity, q certain worthy button
manufactured o Crmsus by any
meApe. but OF wealth sufficient for
modest wants.--of the name OF Fellowes
became the happy father Of q son. The
button maker was stout, John Bullish,
business-like, practical his wife,
Marianne, who was the daughter of
Baptist minister OF somewhat bookisb
habits, had vein of gentle romance,
and loved her Mrs. Hemans next
to Cowper's Hymns, "The Pill
grims Progress" and the Bible.
The father suggested the unpretend-
ing names of John, Richard, Henry,
which latter had q tendency in his mouth
10 lose one letter; the mother wished
for something more poetic for the in
FAINT Hercules, who, she was sure, would
grow up to be something remarkable.
She suggested Gerald, Cyril, Cecil,
Leonard. The father made a wry face
at each, but he was heartily fond and
proud Of his sentimental, "superior
wife, and wished to please her. At last
she discovered among her ancestors
for she boosted of ancestors, while
he did not 60 beyond grand
father who had kept small
checsemonger's shop-a certain Se-
bsstian This was too alluring o
name. She harped on the Sebastian"
till her husband gave in, and the boy
baby was christcned-for Richard Eel
loves did not "hold with the Bap-
tists"-by this high-sounding appeila-
ton and Sebastian's mother, as mo-
theirs have a way OF doing, built her
airy castles OF his future, and dreamed |
Of the honor he would shed on the
family he had come to adorn. For a
wonder her dreams seemed likely to
he fulfilled. He was-every one said
so, not only his parents and nurse
beautiful baby, strong, vigor- |
ous, rosy-cheeked, dimpled he read |
at four he got well through the pre-
liminsry fortunes OF pothooks and
hangers he even triumphed rapidly
over the multiplication table. His
mother adored him and nourished his
growing mind with such literature as
oldest thing was that the child began
to develop an unexpected talent.
Neither father, mother, uncle, aunt,
nor grandparent had shown any
marked leaning in the same di-
rection - for feeble pencil land
scapes with trees done in little rows of
three, black silhouettes or Berlin-work
figures can hardly be called works of
art. Sebastian was going to be an
artist At five he scratched figures
with knitting. needle on the color
washed walls of night narsery, above
his bed he scrawled on his slate with
more intention than is generally shown
IN such efforts he covered his books
with men and women in violent action
he made a portrait, at eight, of the
black cat and his grandfather Mildmay
with his big, round spectacles, which
were very like e.; he spoiled everything
he touched that would admit being
drawn upon.
That was his fathers version; his
mothers was very different. II he
failed to get high place at school, she
excused him by saying that his head
WAS full Of other things you could not
expect genius to be good at rule of
three and hic hare hOc. TWAS not that
he was idle or obstinate, as his master
said it was that he had not scope to
show his talents. Her husband good
naturally scolded her for her folly,
while all the time his own heart was +
weak about this only son. He was now {
fifteen, and old enough to come into t
the business as the manufacturer an !
nounced In o matrimonial tSte-d-tete
to his wife. '
A stranger casually glancing at this {
couple-the husband black-browed, S
thick-set, with somewhat bulldog set ,
of features, stout and solid figure, and /
loud. rather clustering manner of I
speech the wife mild-eyed, pretty, in {
an old-fashioned, intensely feminine
fashion, as much like brown-haired c
spaniel as he was to bulldog. with her l
dropping curls and soft, insipid smile a
would perhaps have thought him do t
mestic tyrant and her willing slave. s
The facts were just opposite. The i
Birmingham button-maker was en- S
tirely led, if in a silken string, q
by his softly sentimental wife 8
she could do with him what f
she pleased. In his eyes she was high
born, elegant, accomplished, interest !
ing :: he was diffident about his own
tastes, and dependent on her mind out t
side the sphere of his business, which S
lac kept apart from her. He had let
her manage the boy as he had let her q
name him according to her fancy, and Y
he thought himself favored by fortune {
for having won so uncommon {
wife. as he called her. He had mis- q
giving that his Mariannes opinion on j
the subject of Sebastian's career might
not agree with his, and so, though he i
pronounced it with great show of de- '
termination, as if it were an unaltera- t
BILE decree. he mentally waited with !
some anxiety to hear what she had to /
say. v
"You really think of our Sebastian S
taking to the business, Richard 2" his i
wife cried, raising her mild voice above :
its usual level. and throwing up her t
long, thin, mittened hands with c
gesture of astonisbmeni "You can j
not be serious, dearest You must Il
know it viii never he" 0
"Why on earth not? It's not bad v
businers nor anything disgraceful. You Fl
used not TO despise me for being a b
manufacturer, Marianne. s
"You, dear? Oh, no! 1 have no
thing to say against the business for S
YOU bu, Sebastian is different He is h
= genius he must follow his bent" h
Mr.. Fellowes shrugged his square n
shoulders in helpless sort of way he L
was silent for q moment. and he then n
said in dubious tone "Idoubt genius
buttering his bread, Marianne. Ii
"My dear, every one thinks him h
wonder / showed Mr. Gilbertson, the b
framemaker, his book of drawings, and G
he said they were astonishing. Il
Gilbertson should be Judge if any one
is. He says we ought to send him to n
study in London he knows an artist, "
. very gifted man, who takes pupils al
and trains them for the Royal Academy. G.
It would be dreadful TO tie down such u
. boy as Sebastian to buttonmaking. 81
I've nothing to say against it," she 6
added coaxingly, as she perceived q p
cisnbf fvour, on har lcrI au1 actarfu | 4,